In a process of manufacturing a semiconductor substrate (hereinafter, referred to simply as a “substrate”), conventionally, various processings are performed on a substrate by using a substrate processing apparatus. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-158588 (Document 1), for example, discloses a substrate processing apparatus capable of removing organic substances deposited on a substrate by using a removal liquid. In the substrate processing apparatus, by supplying temperature-controlled nitrogen gas onto a back surface of the substrate from a back-surface side gas nozzle before supplying the removal liquid onto the substrate from a removal liquid nozzle, a temperature of the substrate becomes close to that of the removal liquid. It is thereby possible to make the temperature of the removal liquid flowing on a surface of the substrate almost uniform on the entire surface of the substrate and improve the inplane uniformity of the processing of removing the organic substances.
In another example, by supplying a chemical liquid onto a substrate having a surface on which a resist pattern is formed, a processing such as etching or the like is performed on the surface of the substrate. Further, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-305177 (Document 2) discloses a substrate processing apparatus for processing a substrate having a surface on which a thin film formed thereon is patterned by dry etching with a resist film as a mask, and the substrate processing apparatus is capable of removing reaction products formed on the surface of the substrate by using a removal liquid. In the substrate processing apparatus of Document 2, a cup for capturing the removal liquid scattered from the substrate being rotated is provided, and by reducing the exhaust of atmosphere in the cup in removing the reaction products with the removal liquid, it is possible to effectively prevent deterioration in the removal capability for the reaction products due to vaporization of water from the removal liquid, or the like.
In the substrate processing apparatus of Document 1, which includes a vacuum chuck having an adsorption surface and holds the substrate by adsorption with the vacuum chuck, it is impossible to perform any processing onto an entire lower surface of the substrate by using a processing liquid. Further, in a configuration in which a gas ejection nozzle facing the lower surface of the substrate is provided and a processing liquid is supplied onto the lower surface, in order to prevent any failure of the gas ejection nozzle due to a flow of the processing liquid into the gas ejection nozzle, required is a technique for suppressing the flow of the processing liquid into the gas ejection nozzle.
On the other hand, in the apparatus in which a processing is performed in the cup, like in Document 2, if gas containing a chemical liquid component is diffused out of the cup, there is a possible that the gas may have some effect on devices and the like disposed around the cup, and accordingly it is absolutely necessary to exhaust the atmosphere in the cup. Therefore, there is a limitation in suppressing the vaporization of the chemical liquid by reducing the exhaust. Actually, since there occurs a decrease in the temperature especially at an outer edge portion of the substrate, it is impossible to improve the uniformity of the processing using the chemical liquid.